Your Name Is
Truthfully, there had never been an option to abandon Yuan Shu and leave.
She might become a traitor who declares herself emperor later, but right now she was the youngest daughter of the prestigious Yuan clan of Runan—one of the most distinguished families in the land.
If I left her to die in front of everyone, I wouldn't exactly come out looking good either.
So…
"Enough. Get on, quickly."
"Kyaa?!"
I yanked Yuan Shu up with the same roughness one might use to hoist an unfilial son carrying his father on a backpack. Once I roughly deposited her onto the horse, she glared at me, but at least she stopped spouting nonsense like before.
Of course she wouldn't. If you start throwing a fit at your only ally while surrounded by enemies, that makes you the real piece of work.
"What are you doing? Why aren't you getting down?"
…?
What now? What nonsense was she spouting this time?
"Surely you don't intend to ride the same horse as me? No matter how generous I am, I would never stoop so low as to share a mount with someone of inferior birth. This horse is already beneath me, but… haa, what can I expect…"
So she was saying she'd ride my horse to escape, and I should just walk?
"Now, get down quickly and hold the reins."
No, she meant she'd watch from atop the horse while I held the reins and led her to safety.
I'd underestimated Yuan Shu.
She was a born bastard.
She probably wasn't this bad in real history. Did they make her like this just because it was a game?
…That way of speaking. In the game, characters with the villainess trait talked exactly like that.
Did they give Yuan Shu the villainess trait just because she came from a prestigious family?
Well, she was from a prestigious family, and she was a bastard, but there was no need to turn her into a woman just to shove that trait in.
Setting all that aside—seriously, who the hell decided Yuan Shu would be popular as a woman?!
Historically, the only thing that worked on someone like her was a good beating, but…
"You bastards! What are you standing around for?! Can't you see they're trying to run?! Kill them already!"
There was no time to beat her senseless right now.
If I wanted to throw the enemies off balance, I had to strike first.
With my right hand still gripping Yuan Shu, I tapped the horse's flank with my heels. The beast let out a cry and charged forward.
"How dare you—!"
Thud!
"Guh—!"
The Yellow Turbans were caught off guard by the sudden charge. I drove my spear into the nearest one with my left hand. He died without even managing a proper scream.
"Uwaaah!!"
Another one rushed in from the right. I shifted Yuan Shu to my left hand like I was tossing her aside, flipped the spear into my right hand, and swung it backward.
"—get down right this—"
Slash!
"Kkhh… Aaaagh!!"
I didn't have enough strength behind it to kill him, but the fallen man's head burst open under the horse's hooves.
Damn… good thing I skipped breakfast.
Whoosh!
Thwack!
"Urrgh…"
I tried to throw my spear at the one in front and draw my bow, but Yuan Shu's struggling kept getting in the way.
I lifted her with my left hand and shoved her onto the saddle, then pushed the back of her head down against my shoulder so she wouldn't fall. She clung to me like a cicada to keep from slipping off.
"—not… Hieeek!"
Thanks to that, I managed to pull out my bow… though the position was a little embarrassing.
A woman straddling a man on horseback, bouncing around like that… No, don't think about it. If I got hard now, I'd be in real trouble.
Normally I'd stand in the stirrups to shoot steadily, but with Yuan Shu there it was impossible, so I gave up on aiming properly and just loosed an arrow.
It wasn't meant to hit anyone anyway—just to scare them. Missing didn't matter.
As expected, the Yellow Turbans panicked and scattered in all directions.
I tossed the bow aside and turned the horse toward the one who looked like their leader among the fleeing men.
No matter how fast a person runs, they can't outrun a horse.
The enemy commander drew closer and closer.
I drew my sword and brought it down on his neck. His head came off cleanly.
Before it hit the ground, I snatched it up and broke through the Yellow Turban ranks. The remaining soldiers could only stare blankly at their headless leader's corpse.
***
Once we neared the government suppression forces near Luoyang, I slowed the horse.
Only then did Yuan Shu seem to regain the energy to throw a fit. She lifted her face from where she'd buried it against my body and glared at me with bright red cheeks.
If I'd saved her life, the least she could do was say thank you. Why was she throwing another tantrum?
If she hated it so much, she should've escaped on her own.
She'd nearly died sipping honey water on the battlefield, after all.
"Get off."
"Huh?"
"Do you expect me to appear before them looking like this? You must have nothing in that head of yours, on top of your pathetic birth."
Come to think of it, Yuan Shu was still clinging to me in that embarrassing position.
I stopped the horse and leaned back. Yuan Shu squirmed and turned herself forward.
Did she even know what gratitude was?
She was awfully harsh toward the person who'd just saved her life.
Even the other villainesses with the same trait weren't this rude. Was it because her base personality was just that rotten?
Rude little— I wanted to throw her off the horse and whip her.
At least she wasn't telling me to get off like before. That was something.
If she'd said that now, I really wouldn't have been able to hold back.
We rode in silence for a while, the only sound the steady clip-clop of hooves.
Yuan Shu opened her mouth as she watched a sentry spot us and shout something over his shoulder.
"Still, you helped me and even earned a small merit. I suppose I should repay you."
"No, it's fine."
"There's no need to refuse. If I let you go like this, it would bring shame to the Yuan clan. Once we arrive, wait there with Ji Ling until I call for you."
I said it was fine!
Staying with Yuan Shu any longer was dangerous.
She might actually tell me to get under her at this rate.
Given her personality, she'd definitely throw a fit if I refused.
Running from Liu Bei only to end up with Yuan Shu?
I wasn't that much of an idiot.
I'd had the misfortune of getting tangled up with Yuan Shu, but I was done with this.
Honestly, just looking at Liu Bei's face would be more comfortable at this point.
Now that my name would spread throughout the Han, deserting at night with loot shouldn't earn me any complaints.
The rumors would probably go something like this:
"I heard some young man in Youzhou charged into a bandit camp alone to avenge his parents."
"Really? Tsk tsk… Poor fool. He must be dead."
"If it were me, I wouldn't have even mentioned it! Apparently he slaughtered them all and even took the leader's head!"
"What?! There's someone like that?! What's his name?"
"What was it again? Bang Yeol, I think."
"Bang Yeol? Sounds like low birth, but that's impressive!"
"Perhaps the world isn't ending just yet. Last time we had that filial son who observed a six-year mourning period, and now we've got this one too."
Something along those lines would spread, right?
If some bastard tried to interfere while the filial son Bang Yeol was throwing money at his parents' and family's graves for one last act of filial piety, that guy would never be able to hold his head up in the Han again.
So I could probably walk around openly during the day… but I had no idea what Liu Bei would do if she saw me like this.
Who knows? She might have Guan Yu and Zhang Fei drown me.
Then if anyone asked about Bang Yeol, I could just say, "There was someone like that… but he's gone now."
Liu Bei probably wouldn't go that far, but it was better to be careful.
Anyway, as long as I didn't get caught red-handed deserting with loot at night, nothing could stop me afterward.
Filial piety? Of course that was a lie.
I'd already avenged them—what did I care about someone else's parents' graves?
I wasn't going to waste money on graves anyway. I'd use it as bribes in Luoyang. But who would know?
While I was lost in such happy delusions, we arrived at the suppression army's camp.
Now I just had to drop Yuan Shu off here and head straight to Nusang Village.
No matter what that woman said behind me, I'd just pretend not to hear.
Yuan Shu's "repayment" felt nothing but ominous.
And so, the moment I set her down and quickly turned to leave—
"Aha! So you're Bang Yeol! I saw you cut off the leader's head just now~ That was really impressive! Oh dear, look at me. You must be exhausted after fighting so hard! Come on, don't just stand there—let's get you inside!"
A woman burst out from the entrance as if she'd been waiting for me to drop Yuan Shu off, and grabbed my hand.
***
She was smiling brightly.
Her expression never changed, as if she'd been born smiling.
Could she even see properly with her eyes like that?
Well, it didn't matter.
Whether someone walked around with their eyes open or closed was their business. What mattered was getting out of here quickly.
…Though I'd appreciate it if she'd let go of my hand first.
"Um, my hand…"
"There's a place to wash your hands over there! Come on, I'll show you the way!"
I said let go—I was going home!
I hadn't even properly spoken to this woman yet, but she was already exhausting.
The only person who could rein in someone like her would be someone skilled at making the atmosphere awkward without caring about others' opinions.
"He's my guest. What do you think you're doing, grabbing him like that?"
Yeah. Someone like Yuan Shu.
She was already calling me her guest even though I hadn't accepted any invitation.
Shameless, but… right now, I was just grateful.
"I was wondering which part of a eunuch's granddaughter they'd cut off. Looks like it's the ears? Didn't you hear me? Remove your filthy hands at once, Cao Cao."
Even a worm has its tricks—why wouldn't Yuan Shu have hers?
That woman had a real talent for getting under people's skin.
Anyway, I really wished Cao Cao would let go…
…Wait. Cao Cao?
That was Cao Cao?
Startled, I shook off the woman's—Cao Cao's—hand.
"…Oh? That's a new reaction."
Ah…